Budget Blast

Learning Objectives.

Students will be able to:

develop a sense of the costs of goods and services and the

average annual salaries for multiple professions through a simulation.

make financial decisions by weighing possible alternatives

or options when creating a monthly budget for themselves.

identify the differences between basic needs and wants,

evaluating their own budget for needs and wants expenditures.

This lesson plan is part of the Budgeting series by iCivics, Inc. a nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing civic education. For more resources, please

visit www.icivics.org/teachers, where you can access the state standards aligned to this lesson plan. Provide feedback to feedback@icivics.org.

©2011 iCivics, Inc. You may copy, distribute, or transmit this work for noncommercial purposes if you credit iCivics. All other rights reserved.

Time Needed: One to two class

periods

Materials Needed:

Student worksheets

Copy Instructions:

Student packet (4 pages double-sided;

class set)

Transparencies (Average Salaries,

Instructions)

STEP BY STEP

Teacher’s Guide

ANTICIPATE the lesson by asking students the following question: “What is a budget? What

does it mean to stay „under budget‟ or „within budget‟?”

DISTRIBUTE budgeting worksheet packets (3 pages).

INTRODUCE the first page by telling students that they are going to have an opportunity to

plan their future. There are five main choices that they need to make: marital

status, children, home, car, and career.

INSTRUCT students, after they‟ve made their life choices, to turn to worksheet, p.2.

PROJECT the average salary list transparency or page for students and help them find their

chosen career. They should record the average salary for their career.

REVIEW instructions for steps two and three on worksheet, p.2. It may be helpful at this

point to distribute calculators for your students, or use this as an exercise in

mental math. Either way, circulate to ensure that students are completing steps

two and three correctly.

DIRECT students attention to worksheet, p.3. Tell students that they are going to set up a

budget, but that there are certain rules they have to follow based on their previous

life choices.

PROJECT the budgeting instructions transparency or page for students and talk them

through the first few boxes, until they gain an understanding of how to follow the

instructions.

INSTRUCT students to develop their budgets independently, circulating to check for

understanding. You can also have students who have grasped the instructions

work as peer instructors, helping others create their budgets.

REVIEW instructions for steps five and six on worksheet, p.2. Students should determine

what kinds of adjustments need to be made and return to work on their budgets.

DISTRIBUTE the reading “Needs and Wants” to students as they complete their budget. They

will need to keep their budgets to complete the reading activity.

Budget Blast Accountant ($54,600) Actor ($43,411)

Administrative Assistant ($27,400)

Advertising Manager ($78,654) Aerospace Engineer ($72,590)

Air Traffic Controller ($107,780) Aircraft Pilot ($148,810)

Architect ($73,650) Artist or Related Career ($23,520)

Astronomer ($97,320)

Athlete ($56,120) Athletic Trainer ($33,940)

Automotive Service Technician or Mechanic ($33,160) Barber ($21,200)

Biological Scientist ($68,950)

Biomedical Engineer ($67,690) Bus Driver ($26,017)

Cardiovascular Technologist/Technician ($38,690) Carpenter ($49,990)

Carpet, Floor, and Tile Installer ($39,595) Cashiers ($23,877)

Chef, Cook, or Food Prep Worker ($42,723)

Chemical Engineer ($76,770) Childcare Worker ($22,982)

Chiropractor ($69,910) Choreographer ($33,670)

Civil Engineer ($64,230)

Clergy ($63,130) Coaches ($28,350)

Computer Scientists ($85,190) Computer Software Engineer ($85,660)

Construction or Building Inspector ($41,620)

Construction Laborer ($37,753) Construction manager ($69,870)

Cosmetologist ($21,800) Curator ($36,470)

Customer Service Representative ($27,020) Dancer ($20.33/hr)

Dental Hygienist ($64,910)

Dentist ($153,541) Dietitians ($48,090)

Economist ($121,274) Electrical or Electronic Engineers ($73,528)

Electrical or Electronics Installer/Repairer ($52,435)

Electrician ($62,791) Emergency Medical Technician ($40,157)

Engineer ($82,582) Farmer, Rancher, or Agricultural Manager ($61,481)

Fashion Designer ($73,819) Financial Manager ($94,694)

Firefighting Occupation ($55,932)

Fisher or Fishing Vessel Operator ($41,471) Fitness Worker ($30,727)

Flight Attendant ($37,357) Food Service Manager ($41,780)

Graphic Designer ($45,007)

Home Appliance Repairer ($35,960) Hotel, Motel, or Resort Desk Clerk ($21,470)

Human Resources Managers or Specialist ($79,032)

Average Salaries

Industrial Production Manager ($83,952) Insurance Sales Agent ($62,489)

Interior Designer ($58,151)

Interpreter ($39,255) Judge ($109,842)

Landscape Architect ($61,927) Lawyer ($102,698)

Legal Assistant ($44,881) Librarian ($67,259)

Machinist ($49,742)

Massage Therapist ($38,762) Mathematician ($64,372)

Medical Laboratory Technician ($40,927) Meeting or Convention Planner ($50,787)

Model ($34,980)

Musician ($49,849) Nuclear engineer ($92,576)

Nurse ($65,120) Nutritionist ($50,407)

Occupational Therapist ($70,565) Optometrist ($91,964)

Painter ($44,647)

Paralegal ($60,998) Paramedic ($33,382)

Pharmacist ($107,431) Pharmacy Technician ($30,283)

Photographer ($30,363)

Physical Therapist ($70,113) Physician Assistant ($90,580)

Physician ($188,174) Physicist ($119,386)

Police or Detective ($42,910)

Probation Officer ($50,284) Professor ($79,849)

Psychologist ($66,380) Public Relations Specialist ($45,348)

Radiation Therapist ($73,266) Radio Equipment Installer or Repairer ($58,388)

Radio Operator ($51,175)

Radiologic Technologist or Technician ($53,021) Rail Transportation ($53,955)

Real Estate Broker or Sales Agent ($41,760) Real Estate Managers ($55,017)

Receptionist ($30,072)

Reporter ($40,549) Retail Salesperson ($31,049)

Secretary ($37,389) Security Guard ($24,542)

Singer ($49,849) Social Worker ($41,982)

Statistician ($46,033)

Surgeon ($263,893) Surgical Technologist ($40,895)

Taxi Driver or Chauffeur ($20,369) Teacher ($46,702)

Umpire ($21,260)

Veterinarian ($91,565) Veterinary Technologist or Technician ($31,247)

Writers and Editors ($57,669)

BUDGETING INSTRUCTIONS

FOOD/CLOTHING:

The minimum for groceries should be $200/

month. All other categories are open.

After total has been found, multiple total by

number of children.

HEALTH/BEAUTY:

Insurance: $116.00 x number of children

All other categories are open.

ENTERTAINMENT:

All categories are open.

Must multiply movies and music by number

of children.

SAVINGS/INVESTMENTS:

College Fund: $50 x number of children

All other categories are open.

MISCELLANEOUS:

All categories are open.

Must multiply travel and gifts by number of

children.

Apa

rtm

ent

Tow

nhom

e

Hou

se

Man

sion

UTILITIES:

Electricity: $30 $85 $150 $210

Water/Sewer: $10 $15 $25 $50

Natural Gas: - - $30 $80 $110

Telephone: This is an open category.

**IF MARRIED, DIVIDE BY TWO**

Min

ivan

Seda

n

Spor

ts C

ar

Tru

ck

TRANSPORTATION:

Car Payments: $600 $450 $800 $720

Car Insurance: $100 $85 $150 $120

Car Maintenance: This is an open category.

Public Transportation: This is an open

category.

Budget Blast

Budgeting Instructions

HOUSING: Rent/Mortgage Insurance

Apartment: $1,200 $10

Town House: $3,000 $40

House: $4,570 $70

Mansion: $10,982 $150

**IF MARRIED, DIVIDE BY TWO**

Name:

Worksheet p.1

Budget Blast

Minivan

Practical for large

families, this minivan

seats seven and will

carry a ton more!

Great for families of

all sizes!

Medical

Dentist, Doctor,

Nurse, Pharmacist,

Therapist, etc.

Legal

Lawyer, Judge,

Paralegal,

Assistant, etc.

Step One. Circle one item in each row from marital status to career.

Single or Married

How many kids? None 1 2 3 4 5 other ________________________

Ho

use

C

ar

Ca

ree

r

Education

Teacher, Professor,

Principal, etc.

Art/

Entertainment

Dancer, singer,

actor, actress,

painter, athlete,

coach, etc.

Business

Insurance,

Management, Real

Estate, etc.

Sedan

A practical car with

good gas mileage, the

sedan will seat five

comfortably and is

good for long-distance

driving.

Sports Car

Who cares about

seating? This baby

seats two, and can

get from 0 to 60 in

record time. Not very

kid-friendly.

Truck

Who doesn‟t need to

haul stuff? This truck

will serve all your

hauling needs, and

comfortably seats

four.

Apartment

Rather let someone

else cut the grass?

Rent this beautiful 2-3

bedroom apartment.

Town House

If the urban feel is for

you, so is this stunning

townhome. At 3

bedrooms it‟s a steal!

Home

Everyone needs more

space, so why not

choose this spacious 4

bedroom home.

Mansion

You have a ton of stuff

and need more space.

12 bedrooms of space?

Then this is for you!

Science & Math

Engineering,

Researcher,

Mathematicians,

Statisticians, etc.

Service

Police, Fire, EMT,

Retail, Beauty,

Clergy, Cook, etc.

Step Six. Time to make adjustments!

If you got a positive number, you‟re all set! You are making more than you plan to

spend, so there will be extra money for your savings account.

If you got a negative number, it‟s time to look back at your budget and make some

changes!

Worksheet p.2

Budget Blast Step Two. Find out how much you would make on average in your chosen career.

Career: _____________________________________ Salary: _________________________________

Step Three. Find out how much you‟re paying in TAXES! Keep in mind that these are only

FEDERAL taxes. There are several other kinds of taxes that you would pay in real life.

10% $0—$8,375

15% $8,375—$34,000

25% $34,000—$82,400

28% $82,400—$171,850

33% $171,850—$373,650

35% $373,650+

These are called tax brackets. You

pay taxes based on how much you

earn. Circle the tax bracket that

applies to the career you‟ve chosen!

X

(Salary) (Total Taxes Paid) (Percentage of Taxes)

=

— (Salary) (Spendable Income) (Total Taxes Paid)

=

X 12 = (Monthly Budget) (Total Yearly Spending)

—(Spendable Income) (Total Yearly Spending)

=

Step Five. Are you making enough money to live with the budget that you set?

Now it’s time for you to set a budget. Go to worksheet p. 3 and do your best to

set a monthly budget. Follow the instructions that the teacher gives you

carefully!

Name:

Name:

Worksheet, p.3

Budget Blast

HOUSING:

Rent/Mortgage: ____________________

Insurance: _______________________________

Home Repairs: ___________________________

Home Improvements: ______________________

Home Goods: _____________________________

TOTAL: __________________

FOOD/CLOTHING:

Groceries: ___________________________

Dining Out: __________________________

Snacks: ____________________________________

Clothes: ___________________________________

Shoes: _________________________________

TOTAL: __________________

HEALTH/BEAUTY:

Insurance: ________________________

Out of Pocket Expenses: ____________________

Fitness: __________________________________

Grooming: _______________________________

TOTAL: __________________

UTILITIES:

Electricity: ______________________________

Water/Sewer: _______________________________

Natural Gas: ________________________________

Telephone: _________________________________

TOTAL: __________________

TRANSPORTATION:

Car Payments: ______________________

Car Insurance: ____________________________

Car Maintenance: _________________________

Public Transportation: ______________________

TOTAL: __________________

ENTERTAINMENT:

Movies: ___________________________

Music: __________________________________

Cable: ___________________________________

Internet: __________________________________

Computer: _____________________________

TOTAL: __________________ SAVINGS/INVESTMENTS:

Savings: _______________________________

Retirement: ______________________________

Stocks/Bonds: ____________________________

College Fund: _____________________________

TOTAL: __________________

MISCELANEOUS:

Travel: _________________________________

Pets: ____________________________________

Gifts: _____________________________________

Donations: _________________________________

Other: ____________________________________

TOTAL: __________________

Step Four. Fill out this budget as best you can

using the numbers your teacher gives you.

Remember, you‟re figuring out how much you‟ll

spend on an item each month!

Monthly Budget

Monthly Budget Total: ____________

Reading

Budget Blast

Needs and Wants

Tanya was a middle school student. She was

good at math, had some trouble with English,

and excelled at sports. She lived with her

parents, her grandmother, and her two sisters.

Her parents gave her a weekly allowance as long

as she completed simple chores. She really

disliked chores, but she really liked her weekly

allowance so she did them anyway. Every week

she would get excited about things to buy.

NEEDS WANTS

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

Name:

Things change though, and when the economy

started to have troubles, so did Tanya‟s family. Her

dad lost his job and her mother‟s hours got cut,

which meant she was bringing home less money.

Tanya‟s parents explained that they wouldn‟t be

giving her an allowance anymore. “But how will I buy

the things I need?” Tanya asked her grandmother.

“Tanya,” her grandmother replied, “ it‟s time for you

to learn the difference between things you need and

What do you think Tanya‟s grandmother means about the difference

between wants and needs?

“Exactly,” said Grandma. Tanya shared this new

information with her parents and together they sat

down to talk about their budget. They decided that

a good way to help cut spending in their budget

was to put an “N” next to things they needed to

spend money on and a “W” next to things that they

just wanted. Those were the areas in which they

could start saving money!

“A need,” continued Tanya‟s grandmother, “is

something that is required for survival. A want is

something you would like to have, but don‟t

actually need.”

“I see!” said Tanya. “Things like food and housing

are needs, and things like candy and CDs are

wants!”

Now it‟s your turn to follow the example Tanya‟s family has set:

Step One. Look at your monthly budget and put and “N” next to needs and a “W” next to wants.

Step Two. Then make a list of five of each of them here: